Two of my pin loom patterns appear in the 2017 Little Looms magazine by Handwoven. You are going to love them.

First, the Color Flow Rug. I call it Color Flow because the colors transition nicely due to the quadrant squares between the solid squares. Because you change colors during the warping and weaving process, part of the square is solid, and part of the square is a mixed color. The twisted cord tassels really finish off the rug nicely.

Second, the Geometric Waves Scarves. These striking scarves are actually just solid squares sewn with a dark color on one half and a light color on the other. The lines are all embroidered on. If you use wool, it can be felted. Just be sure to make it extra long as it will shrink in the felting process!

These festive woven projects have you and your friends’ names written all over them. Who doesn’t love a gnome? Add a little snowman to your indoor collection. Decorate with a beautiful wreath and garden flag. Relax on these lovely pillows. It truly is amazing what you can create with squares with a little shaping and sewing.

Each project is made with 4″ squares done in plain weave. (The pattern does NOT include how to plain weave.) Projects range from 1 to 38 squares, making them quick and easy to make.

The pattern includes:

~11 unique designs

~Step-by-step photos

~Templates for the felt pieces

Pattern also includes instructions on how to turn some of these things into magnets, little gift bags, greeting cards, and more.

Projects shown here are made with Red Heart Soft yarn. Not only is it soft, it also has a nice sheen. This is a great yarn for pin looming.

Winners in the Twins Face Off Purse Design Challenge Sponsored by Lion Brand

Congratulations Dana Bincer for designing the winning Bohemian Handbag. It received 70% of the votes! The twins are now tied having won one challenge each.

We received lots of comments in person and in social media about the yarn. So many people loved the bright colors. Our mom raved not only about the yarn but hinted that she would like the Bohemian Handbag as a Mother’s Day gift!

Winners of the Giveaway

Drumroll please for the two winners in the Lion Brand Giveaway.

First Place: Janet C
Janet wins 3 skeins of Lion Brand yarn and the patterns for both purses.

Second Place: Lisa S
Lisa wins both patterns for the purses.

A big thank you to everyone for participating in the Twins Face Off Design Challenge. We are so thankful to Lion Brand for providing the yarn for the challenge and giveaway.

The patterns for both purses are available in the shop. Both the Bohemian Handbag and Flower Power Satchel are included in the one pattern. Learn more about the Handbags pattern.

One of the simplest and easiest ways to adjust a knit or crochet pattern is to change the color. There are several things to keep in mind before changing the color.

Flame Beanies

Substitute Yarn. Use the colors suggested by the designer. If the exact yarn is not available, be sure to substitute with the same weight yarn. If the pattern calls for a light weight yarn (3), try to find another light weight yarn. Substituting with a medium could significantly change the size of the finished project. In the case of beanies pictured above, if the yarn used is larger / heavier than suggested, the hats may end up too big. If gauge is not important, feel free to substitute with any weight and adjust the crochet hook accordingly.

Turtle Family

Fit a Theme. You might want to change colors to fit a theme. Sometimes you want to change the color to a person’s favorite color or you want to match the colors of a person’s room, like a nursery. Notice where the darker colors are used. If you like the original pattern, try to keep the darker colors where the darker colors are used. Keep in mind, some patterns will look fabulous in a different order as well. The turtles pictured above show the same pattern with various color schemes. I went for traditional, then attempted to make one similar to the blue and white porcelain of the 14th century.

Houndstooth Shrug

Notice Stitch Patterns. Some patterns don’t look good in all color schemes. Sometimes a solid color will look better than a variegated color and vice versa. Sometimes the designer chose odd colors but the pattern is beautiful. Look at the stitch work itself and decide if it’s something you like. Houndstooth is often done in black and white, but it would look equally stunning in various colors. I did see a project in lavender and grey. Because the colors were so close, the houndstooth pattern was almost invisible. The stitch work is great, but more contrasting colors would be better.

Owl Bean Bag Set

Go Whimsical. Realism has its place, but sometimes fun and fanciful color schemes can work just as well.

Go Tonal. Working in tones can make for striking projects. Work from light to dark or dark to light, or vary the tones for more stunning transitions.

Hiking Buddy

Notice the sheen of the yarn. Some yarn has a matte look while others are shiny. This can impact the appearance of the final project as well. Would a doll look better shiny or dull? Perhaps the doll would look better in matte colors while the dress is shiny. This hiking buddy pictured above was done in shiny Caron Simply Soft.

Frog it! Sometimes one color doesn’t look as good as we’d like. It might be worth ripping out and trying another color.

My sister and I are considering teaching a break-out session for a small group of kids and naturally we are discussing yarn crafts. Is there any other other type of craft? Not in our humble opinions.

There will be four one-hour sessions…which isn’t a lot of time. So we have decided that crochet is out. We are considering other crafts using yarn. The first and most interesting possibility we discussed was recreating Starry Night in yarn.

Read further for:

Step by Step photos of Deborah’s creation.

Links to the coloring page used as the base.

Link to the website that provided some inspiration.

Tips for creating your own Starry night.

Starry Night Yarn Craft for Kids – Coloring Page

The coloring page makes a great backdrop for creating your own Starry Night in yarn. We did a Google Search focused on images of Starry Night coloring pages. We used a page from SuperColoring.com. Feel free to browse the internet for one that inspires you.

Starry Night Yarn Craft for Kids – Our Inspiration

This project was inspired by a very talented gal by the name of Regina. You must check out the work she has done with kids. Unfortunately she doesn’t appear to be updating her site. But we can still be inspired by her previous work!

Starry Night Yarn Craft for Kids – Some Tips and Thoughts

I spoke with Deborah and asked her for her thoughts. Here are a few:

Spread glue in small portions of the coloring page so you can work in small portions a little at a time.

Bulky yarn makes it easier to cover more space more quickly.

Beware of using yarn that separates easily. It will stick to your fingers and be more frustrating to work with. Deborah used Lion Brand Homespun and found it was tricky to work with as she had more and more glue stuck to her fingers. The yarn separated too easily.

Have a wide range of colors available. Deborah wished she had more colors for her project.

This particular picture actually took quite a bit of time to complete. If time is an issue, you will probably want to choose a more simple coloring page.

So, after completing the prototype Deborah decided that this project won’t make it into the breakout session. I guess it’s back to the drawing board…so to speak.

Yarnivores have incredible appetites. But we should always remember our manners as we consume our fiber arts patterns.

YARNOVATIONS POLICY:
PURCHASED patterns may NOT be copied or distributed. They are for your eyes only.

FREE patterns MAY be copied and distributed as long as you credit the author and Yarnovations.com. Copyright information is in the footer of all the documents, so that should be pretty easy to do.

ALL items made following one of our patterns are yours to do with as you wish. You may give away and sell your handiwork. Share the art of crochet and yarn art with the world by sharing your hand made items.